Sports Photography Revisited

I know, I know... I've been slacking. I guess I've just been so caught up doing things around the house, I've kinda put the photography aside. I discovered the world of bargain shopping and coupon clipping, so let's just say my "Holly Housewife" gene has been in overdrive over the past couple weeks.

Well, last week was one of my brother's last home games as a Killian volleyball player; so Lenin and I both made the trek down to Kendall to watch. This game was particularly special because during the pre-game warm-ups there was a ceremony for the three seniors that will be gone after this year. We had the whole family there cheering him on!

I took the opportunity to try my hand at sports photography once more. Since I wasn't being commissioned as the team photographer this time around, I concentrated more on shooting my brother throughout the game. He did great once again and Killian won!

I'm a sucker for team huddle photos. Maybe it's because I have spent a lot of my childhood and young adult life in them because of soccer.

A photo with the future superstar...

Smile for the Camera...

Yeah, I'm back. I was on a mini-break for the past week from my little hobby here. Of course, my first post back is Trouble. We went to Orlando over the weekend to visit some family, which means Trouble got to spend some quality time at his Tia Lupe's house. Sure, he is smiling in this photo, but it's only because he doesn't realize he's getting dumped for a couple of days. He was whining like a little baby as soon as we left. He's very attached to us. But his cute smile was right back as soon as we went to pick him up on Sunday night.

He really is a cute dog.

The Big 5-0!

Today, my dad turned a young 50 years old. We had a party last night at his house with all the family and friends. It wasn't a huge, fancy party but it was so much fun. Everyone had a blast, even the birthday boy! In the spirit of the milestone age, my dad was decked out in his Hawaiian shirt. You know, Hawaii "Five-O."

This is the cake I ordered for the party. It was so adorable, and SUPER DELICIOUS!

Unfortunately, the little guy didn't make it through the end of the night.

I hope you enjoyed your party, Dad! We are all so lucky to have such a wonderful person as our father. You have always put us first and pushed for us to be the absolute best we can be. I only hope that I can one day be at least half the parent you are. Happy Birthday!

I think I will always be "daddy's little girl."

Dad and all his kids!

Floral Fridays

I can't decide which one I like best, the regular color-enhanced one or the sepia-toned version. Happy Good Friday all!

Do Not Disturb

Do you ever wonder what it's like to wake up a basset hound from his beauty sleep? Trouble has so much expression in his face sometimes that I swear he is consciously communicating with me. I was bored so I started snapping some pictures of him as he slept on the couch. He got cranky and shot me this mean, "I'm trying to sleep here" look.

Be There...The Fair!

Yup, it's that time of year again. Schools are coming up on Spring Break here in South Florida which means only one thing... the Miami Dade County Fair is in full swing. Now exactly 7 years ago, when Lenin and I had just started dating, we tried to go to the fair. Traffic was so horrible that we ended up calling it a night once we had finally hit the intersection of Coral Way and SW 107 Avenue. Last weekend, we decided to give it another shot. We are both HUGE fans of fair-type food. I'm not sure how these people make the food so delicious, but I'm convinced no restaurant in the world could replicate the kind of food found at the fair and make it taste as good. Anything you can imagine can be found at the fair, fried and on a stick!

Lucky for us, the fair gods were smiling down on us since we made it to the fair with hardly any traffic. We did only a handful of rides, but we went there with one purpose...to eat! After the turkey legs, italian sausages, pinchos, arepas, corn on the cob, and cinnamon roll, we were both walking around with a waddle. My inner fatso was in a state of complete bliss. I felt like any food craving that I had experienced over the past year had been completely satisfied. I wish I would have taken more pictures while we were there, but with all the food I just wanted to find a bed to sleep by the end of it all. I seriously think we consumed at least 10,000 calories!

The fair is located at Tamiami Park (by FIU) and is in town until April 12th.

Floral Fridays

Sunflowers are my absolute favorite flower of all time! I'll say it over and over again. For my wedding this past November, I had a sunflower bouquet. My kitchen is decorated with sunflower curtains, rug, towels, and even paper towel holder. I wish I could grow a garden of sunflowers. I know they aren't the fanciest flowers, but every time I see them it makes me smile. One sunflower can turn a bad day around for me. Not sure how many of you have seen the movie "The Order" with Heath Ledger. There is a whole conversation about sunflowers which I think perfectly describes their beauty. "I always thought that when God was making beautiful things, He messed up with sunflowers... Well, 'cause they look like - I don't know. They look like crooked teeth around a mouth that's too big, kind of.... But... just when He was about to start over, He realized that's what made them beautiful. They were a brilliant mistake."

DPS Assignment: Shallow Depth of Field

This week's assignment really had me craving a new camera. Shallow depth of field basically means that only one part of the overall image is in focus while the rest is not. Using shallow depth of field will draw a person's attention to the part of the photo that's in focus. DSLR cameras have special lenses specifically made for these shots, which is why I say I was wishing for a new camera. The group is going a little abstract with next week's assignment, "Wisdom." I'm going to have to really tap into my creativity for that one.

Don't forget to check out the other DPS submissions!